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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention broadly relates to emergency reporting devices, and more particularly, to a device that employs TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) messaging to report a user""s emergency condition to an emergency service center (e.g., the police).
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 illustrates a typical prior art emergency reporting arrangement using a telephone 10. A person in need of emergency help dials a designated emergency reporting number (e.g., xe2x80x98911xe2x80x99) to connect to an emergency service center (ESC) 12. The emergency service center 12 may be a 911response center, a police station, a hospital, a fire station, a combination of these places or any other location equipped for dispatching emergency relief. A carrier network 14 may electrically connect the telephone 10 to a receiving apparatus (e.g., an operator headset receiver) at the ESC 12. The carrier network 14 may include, individually or in combination, the plain old telephone system (POTS), the more advanced public switched telephone network (PSTN), or a wireless communication network (e.g., a cellular phone network) when the telephone 10 is, for example, a cellular phone (xe2x80x9ccell phonexe2x80x9d).
Instead of dialing all the digits contained in the designated emergency reporting number (e.g., xe2x80x989xe2x80x99,xe2x80x981xe2x80x99,xe2x80x981xe2x80x99), a user may instead xe2x80x9cspeed dialxe2x80x9d the number by programming a single key on the telephone 10. In this manner, the user need not press individual digits of the phone number, but, instead, may need to press only a pre-marked speed dial key. Some modem cell phones come equipped with a xe2x80x9cbuttonxe2x80x9d or key on their keypads that is dedicated to dial a predetermined emergency phone number (e.g., xe2x80x98911xe2x80x99).
Another emergency reporting device is shown in FIG. 2, which depicts a prior art xe2x80x9cpanic buttonxe2x80x9d 16 in communication with the emergency service center 12. The panic button 16 may be broadly categorized as a wearable wireless transmitter that finds applications in situations when the user may not easily access the telephone 10 or when the user is not able to dial the ESC""s 12 telephone number. Users of the panic button 16 may include, among others, elderly people and people with delicate health. Normally the user wears the panic button 16 around the user""s neck and presses the panic button when an emergency condition arises. The panic button 16 wirelessly transmits an xe2x80x9calarm signalxe2x80x9d to a base unit or receiving device (not shown) attached to the user""s phone line. The alarm signal instructs the base unit to initiate a phone call to a preprogrammed phone number, usually the phone number of an establishment or company that provides support services and maintenance for such panic buttons in a given geographical area.
A support service provider (SSP) 18 receives the phone call from the base unit of the panic button 16 via the carrier network 14. The base unit may send over the phone line an identification code or number pre-assigned to the panic button 16 by the SSP 18. Therefore, an operator at the SSP 18 may immediately compare the received identification code with a customer database to identify the user of the panic button 16. Upon identifying the user, the operator in the SSP""s 18 facility may place a phone call to the ESC 12 giving requisite information (e.g., the name of the person in distress, the location where help is needed, any known medical history of the person requiring emergency help, etc.) to the operator or relief help dispatcher at the ESC 12. All such information may be stored in the SSP""s 18 customer database (not shown) when the panic button 16 is assigned to a particular user. Instead of manual database look-up, the SSP 18 may implement an automatic database search and comparison process to instantly identify the operator of the panic button 16 as soon as an alarm indication is received from the base unit.
Normally, the carrier network 14 in the panic button application of FIG. 2 is a wireline network, e.g., the POTS or the PSTN. However, in a situation involving close monitoring of the elderly or the disabled (e.g., monitoring of patients in a large hospital complex), the panic button technology may be employed via a local wireless carrier network 14. The patient may activate the personal panic button 16 and the carrier network 14 may wirelessly transfer the help request to appropriate staff or emergency relief personnel in the hospital""s ESC 12. The SSP 18 may not be needed in such an environment as symbolically indicated by the direct dotted connection between the panic button 16 and the ESC 12.
From the foregoing, it can be observed that the prior art devices used to report emergency conditions (e.g., the telephone 10 in FIG. 1 and the panic button 16 in FIG. 2) primarily send emergency help request messages through telephone signals in a circuit-switched telephone environment, i.e., in a telephone environment that xe2x80x9cdedicatesxe2x80x9d an actual physical circuit between the caller and the called party. This xe2x80x9ctraditionalxe2x80x9d approach to request emergency help by calling xe2x80x98911xe2x80x99 may not be effective sometimes, for example, when the person in need of help cannot dial the numbers to place a xe2x80x98911xe2x80x99 call or when that person cannot orally respond to the questions of an operator receiving the xe2x80x98911xe2x80x99 call. Furthermore, the operators or assistants receiving phone calls at the ESC 12 may get swamped by a large number of phone calls and may need to put the last caller on hold prior to reviewing the caller""s emergency situation. This may not be desirable, especially when the caller""s situation demands prompt and instant attention. Additionally, the ESC 12 or the SSP 18 may have a finite number of incoming telephone lines. In that situation, because of the circuit-switched nature of telephone communications, the person placing the emergency call may end up receiving a line xe2x80x9cbusyxe2x80x9d signal instead of an operator""s voice.
The availability of modern high-speed data processors and the continually growing popularity of the Internet make it desirable to offer an emergency reporting device that is capable of reporting a user""s need for emergency help using TCP/IP message packets sent over the Internet to the ESC 12. It is also desirable for the support service provider 18 or a telephone company (telco) to offer a subscription-based or usage-based emergency reporting service using TCP/IP messaging over the Internet.
The present invention contemplates a device for requesting emergency assistance, comprising a processing unit; a panic button coupled to the processing unit, wherein the panic button is configured to send a first indication to the processing unit when a user of the device activates the panic button; and a web browser module coupled to the processing unit, wherein the processing unit is configured to send a second indication to the web browser module in response to the first indication, and wherein the web browser module is configured to deliver a help request message in a TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) format to an emergency service center (ESC) in response to the second indication.
In one embodiment, the web browser module connects the device to the Internet and sends the help request message to the ESC over the Internet. The device may further include a memory unit to store the help request message to be sent to the ESC. The memory may also store various personal information about the user, e.g., the identity of the user, the location or address of the user, any known medical condition the user is suffering from, etc. Such additional information may be included by the processing unit as part of the help request message sent to the ESC. Furthermore, the user""s voice may also be sent to the ESC as one or more TCP/IP data packets over the Internet.
The panic button may be implemented in hardware or software. In a hardware implementation, the panic button may be provided as a button on the face of the housing that can be pushed by the user when in need of emergency help. In a software implementation, a panic button icon may be displayed on a touch-sensitive display screen provided on the housing. The user may touch the icon to activate the panic button functionality, i.e., to transmit the help request message to the ESC.
In one embodiment, the device may include a location identifier unit that supplies the current location of the device (and, hence, of the user operating the device) to the processing unit to be included as part of the help request message so that ESC personnel may efficiently locate the user who requested the emergency help. An image capture device may also be included to allow the processing unit to transmit to the ESC one or more images of the physical vicinity of the user when the user activated the panic button. Such a transmission may help the ESC personnel to identify potential cause of the emergency request from the user and also to obtain evidence that may be needed in future law enforcement efforts.
The web browser module may include an HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) browser or a WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) browser. For example, the web browser module may use the HTML browser when accessing the Internet via a PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network). Alternatively, the web browser module may use the WAP browser when accessing the Internet via a cellular telephone network. Additional wireless data communication module may also be provided within the housing to allow the device to access a wireless communication network.
The device may also include a microphone for the user to orally communicate with the ESC. A speaker unit may also be provided to allow the user to listen to any oral communication. A keypad to enter data text and a display screen to display the data being entered or text of any response message received from the ESC may also be included.
The present invention further contemplates a data storage medium containing software to be executed by a device for requesting emergency assistance, wherein the software is executed by the device upon receiving an indication therefor from a user requesting emergency help, and wherein, upon execution, the software causes the device to establish a connection with an emergency service center (ESC) via a communication network; and deliver a help request message in a TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) format to the ESC via the communication network.
The storage medium may be, for example, a magnetic storage medium (e.g., a floppy diskette) or an optical storage medium (e.g., a compact disc). The device may include a storage drive to receive the storage medium containing the emergency assistance software. The software may be executed by the user of the device in a number of ways. For example, as mentioned hereinbefore, the user may touch an icon on a touch-sensitive display screen for the device to activate the panic button functionality supported by the software.
The present invention still further contemplates a data transfer arrangement comprising a device for requesting emergency assistance, wherein the device is operable by a user in need of emergency help; a computer having stored therein software executable on the device, wherein the device is configured to execute the software in response to an indication therefor received from the user, and wherein the software, upon execution, causes the device to establish a connection with an emergency service center (ESC) via a first communication network, and deliver a help request message in a TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) format to the ESC via the first communication network; and a second communication network linking the device and the computer, wherein the device is configured to transmit a download request to the computer via the second communication network, and wherein the computer is configured to transmit a copy of the software to the device via the second communication network in response to the download request from the device. Thus, the panic button software may be downloaded by the device from a remote computer server.
The device according to the present invention advantageously harnesses the resources of the Internet to allow users to request emergency help over the Internet by simply pushing a panic button provided on the device. Internet-based emergency message delivery may be useful in many situations, for example, when the person in need of help is speech-impaired, disabled or in a situation that prevents that person from orally requesting emergency help.